Cocoa High School

Cocoa High School is located in Cocoa, Florida, and is part of the Brevard Public Schools District. The principal is Rachad Wilson.[2]

Cocoa High School
Address
Cocoa High School Show map of Florida Cocoa High School Show map of the United States
2000 Tiger Trail Cocoa , Florida 32926 United States
Coordinates
Information
Type	Public junior/senior high school
Established	June 15, 1917
School district	Brevard Public Schools
Principal	Rachad Wilson
Staff	89.00 (FTE)[1]
Grades	7-12
Number of students	1,576 (2018-19)[1]
Student to teacher ratio	17.71[1]
Color(s)
Mascot	Tiger
Website	Cocoa high school homepage

History

Cocoa High was constructed in 1917. It was a two-story reinforced concrete building on Willard Street, next to Forrest Park Complex. It contained grades 7-12. Seven years later, in 1925, a new three-story building was built on Forrest Avenue.[3]

On September 2, 1952, Cocoa High School opened its new school building for grades 7-12 on Rockledge Avenue, the present site of Rockledge High. The building on Forrest Avenue became the Junior High for grades 7-8th grades. In 1959 grades 7-8 were moved to a middle school. The Forrest Avenue building was used by the then-new Brevard Jr. College, founded in 1959, for two years. In 1966 the school hired its first Black staff member Dr. Joe Lee Smith as Assistant Principal.

In 1970 a school was built at the present site on Rosetine Street (Tiger Trail). There were 18 separate buildings housing grades 9-12. The part of Rosetine Street bordering the Cocoa High campus was renamed "Tiger Trail" in honor of the school's mascot. In the 1974-75 school year, the School Board appointed its first woman to a high school principalship: Ruth Anderson to Cocoa High. In the 1978-79 school year the School Board appointed its first Black person to a Principalship: Richard "Dick" Blake to Cocoa High.

In 2010, the football team played three out-of-state games in an effort to be nationally ranked.[4] In September 2010, the school was ranked 12th in the nation.[5] It also set a county record for number of consecutive football victories: 31.[6]

In October 2008, the football team lost a game to another Brevard County team. It would be another nine years before Rockledge High School beat Cocoa in the local BBQ Bowl District Champions football game in October 2017.

Campus

The school campus contains 18 single-story buildings located on Tiger Trail, in Cocoa, Florida. [7] [8] A 1,000-seat auditorium was built in 2010.[9]

Sports

Cocoa High was the first High School in the County to win an FHSAA State Championship in any sport, winning the Class "A" State Boys Basketball Championship in 1960. The team finished #1 in the State and had a 29-1 record. The school was also the County's first High School to win a Girl's FHSAA State Championship in any sport winning the Class "AAA" Girls State Basketball Championship in 1978. Coach James Rowe's 2009 Boys Basketball Team won the school's second Basketball Championship winning the Class "AAA" Championship in 2009.

Its primary athletic rival is Rockledge High School.[10]

Activities

The school offers students the following activities:

Student Government Association Robotics National Honor Society Drama Club Mu Alpha Theta Guitar Club J. Kyle Braid Leadership Club Yearbook Key Club Best Buddies International National Beta Club Fellowship of Christian Athletes Academic Team

Spanish Club Future Business Leaders of America Literary Magazine Science Engineering Communications Mathematics Enrichment Music Organizations Marching Band Orchestra Chorus Gospel Choir Science Research JROTC

Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) problems

At the end of the 2005-2006 school year, Brevard Public School District conducted an internal investigation of Cocoa High which resulted in the removal of four of the school's principals. The administration at the school inaccurately reported its FCAT information. The District found that the school's principal, and three assistant principals, were involved in the scandal. All four administrators were removed from their positions.[11]

In 2007, the school scored a "D" based on the standardized testing for the year, the lowest score in the district.[12] This was raised to an "A", using different criteria in 2010, after state officials decided the old standards were too high. It is one of five high schools in Brevard to have this grade.[13]

Notable alumni

• Bob Anderson (1956), All-State football, basketball, baseball, track; school, county first All-American in football. Two-time All-American at West Point; Heisman Trophy finalist twice. Professional football New York Giants.[14]
• Emory L. Bennett (Class of 1948), Korean War Medal of Honor recipient.[15]
• Vassar Carlton (1932), 18 varsity letters for football, basketball, baseball; U-Fla. letterman in football, baseball. Retired as Chief Justice Florida Supreme Court.
• Rodney Chester (Class of 1983), actor, dancer, choreographer
• Jamel Dean, Tampa Bay professional football player
• James Folston (Class of 1989), professional American football player.[16]
• Ronald Patrick (Class of 2009), professional American football player.
• Jawaan Taylor '2016, professional football player for Jacksonville Jaguars.[17]
• Jesse Lee Kercheval (Class of 1974, graduated 1973), author, poet, and professor of English at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.[18]
• Scott Thompson alias Carrot Top (Class of 1983), comedian.[19]
• Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, professional football player, New Orleans Saints[17]
• Chip Skowron, hedge fund portfolio manager convicted of insider trading

Footnotes

1. "COCOA HIGH SCHOOL". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
2. "Administration of CHS".
3. Glenn, Caroline (9 August 2016). "Cocoa High School celebrates 100 years". Melbourne, Florida: Florida Today.
4. Florida Today retrieved 5 August 2010 Archived September 15, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
5. Mccallum, Brian (2010-09-15). "Cocoa 12th in national poll". Florida Today. Retrieved 2014-04-22.
6. McCallum, Brian (15 October 2010). "Cocoa rolls sets record for victories". Melbourne, Florida: Florida Today. pp. 1C.
7. "Aerial view". 2000 Rosetine St: Maps.google.com. Retrieved 2014-04-22.CS1 maint: location (link)
8. "Cocoa High School". brevard.k12.fl.us. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
9. "Veterans Day Events:Cocoa Beach High School" (PDF). The Intercom. 34 (1): 12. January 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-27.
10. McCallum, Brian (November 1, 2019). "Rivalry games vary in weight". Florida Today. Melbourne, Florida. pp. 1B. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
11. "High school principal retires over FCAT scandal". Tampa Bay 10. 2006-07-01. Retrieved 2014-04-22.
12. Downs, Megan (March 16, 2008). School aims to succeed. Florida Today.
13. Spitzer, Michelle (8 December 2010). "With new rules, Cocoa High revels in first-ever A grade". Melbourne, Florida: Florida Today. pp. 1A.
14. "Bob Anderson". databasefootball.com. Archived from the original on April 11, 2016. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
15. Hill, William D.A. "Vets' home named for local hero". p. 1B. Retrieved December 8, 2010.
16. "James Folston Past Stats, Statistics, History, and Awards". databaseFootball.com. 1971-08-14. Archived from the original on 2015-04-14. Retrieved 2014-04-22.
17. "2019 NFL Draft: Jags claim Cocoa High's Jawaan Taylor, Dean to Bucs". Florida Today. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
18. Kenyon Review Archived October 3, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
19. "Cocoa High School - Thompson, Scott (1983) Profile". Alumnivillage.com. Archived from the original on 2015-06-30. Retrieved 2014-04-22.